Location : Manchester Department : Legal Services Salary : Grade SS1, £72,031 - £77,783 Working Hours : Monday to Friday Contract Type : Full Time, 35 hours per week Closing Date: 7 December 2025 (23:59) Interview: week commencing: 20 or 27 January 2026 Manchester aims to be in the top-flight of world-class cities, with a dynamic economy and highly skilled people; to be well-connected, limiting climate change, and helping all of us feel safe and live well in our attractive and welcoming city. We are looking to appoint a new Head of People, Place and Regulation (Legal). The successful candidate will report to the Assistant Director for People Place and Regulation (Legal) and will be expected to deputise as needed. Our Legal Services Teams play an integral part in helping to deliver these priorities, and to support this we are committed to attracting, developing and retaining a world-class workforce. We are a service that advises on complex, ground-breaking initiatives, making meaningful and lasting differences to the lives of our residents and visitors. We continue to be one of the largest in-house Local Authority legal teams in the UK, running a shared service with Salford City Council, and with Rochdale Borough Council for Children’s legal work. In addition, we also provide legal support to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, and these roles put you among the few practitioners in England’s first, and biggest, devolved region. We work with passion and pride in Manchester with a team of over 240 engaged, professional officers across the service. This role offers opportunity to grow and lead your teams within the People, Place and Regulatory Group. We are a high performing, innovative and commercially focused Council and are seeking collaborative and corporate leaders who will lead, manage and inspire teams to deliver positive change in Manchester. This is a particularly exciting time to join our organisation. Manchester and Greater Manchester is a key engine of growth in the UK and in this role, you will be immersed in the inner workings of our city and city region, from fast-moving globally recognised regeneration programmes to cutting edge legal work, leading our teams requires enthusiasm, motivation and a will to impress (and be impressed). We are looking for exceptional person who can evidence strong strategic thinking, a high level of political awareness, effective communication skills and the ability to influence, innovative thinkers with the ability to find solutions and whilst considering policy and procedure, inspirational leaders who can positively influence the performance of others, inspiring trust and fostering confidence in others’ ability to achieve high standards, thereby enhancing a performance orientated culture which supports the delivery of high-quality services. You will have the ability to control numerous projects simultaneously to budget and deadline, whilst maintaining excellent quality control and working with a wide range of partners, and to represent the organisation at a senior level. You will; Be a qualified Solicitor, Barrister or Chartered Legal Executive with significant experience in the subject matter and litigation rights. Have significant experience of dealing with and effectively managing client relationships, often dealing with extremely sensitive issues. Have experience of preparing, managing and monitoring significant complex legal work in a large and complex organisation. Have experience of managing at least one or more areas covered by the People, Place and Regulation Group. Have an understanding of the national policy context for local government. We offer our staff flexible working with an effective hybrid working-practice model. There’s opportunity for development and variety thanks to the way our teams practise in our Lexcel-accredited and supported legal service. We offer excellent employee benefits including a competitive salary with annual pay rises, 24 hour Employee Assistance Programme, Local Government Pension, 26 days plus an extra 5 days after 5 years’ service, and many more staff benefits. For the full list please see the link below. If you would like to have a more informal conversation about this role, please contact me on saiqa.hussain@manchester.gov.uk I look forward to your interest and learning more about you. Working Hours: 35 Hours per Week/Full-Time Contract Type: Permanent This role is subject to - Qualified as a Solicitor, Barrister, or Chartered Legal Executive with Litigation Rights Application: - Curriculum Vitae and detailed Expression of Interest setting out how your skills and experience meet the role profile To apply please visit our website: https://tinyurl.com/yv58py6a